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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. press — to push
  3. game — a match
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. race — a contest
  6. wind — moving air
  7. root — of a word
  8. root — of a plant
  9. press — newspapers
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. wind — moving air
  12. current — of water
  13. band — a ring
  14. bark — to shout
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. band — a music group
  17. game — wild animals
  18. race — the arms race
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. race — humankind
  21. current — happening now
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. root — the cause
  24. press — a publisher

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com